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Friday, 25 May 2012

Matthew Garrett has committed changes to the Linux kernel to have Linux Fedora 17 working on Macs. Some of these changes involve dealing with Macs with multiple GPUs. See more details in the url below:https://lkml.org/lkml/2012/3/23/260

Tuesday, 22 May 2012

The Linux hybrid graphics community has grown massively in the last few years, and the large number of people with hybrid graphics laptops has spurred the development of tools to have these devices fully supported in Linux. Some of this great work, the PRIME dmabuf code developed by David Airlie, has now been applied to support ARM's next-generation GPU Mali chips. Tom Cooksey reports the developments below:

For the last few months we (ARM MPD... "The Mali guys") have been working ongetting X.Org up and running with Mali T6xx (ARM's next-generation GPU IP).The approach is very similar (well identical I think) to how things work on OMAP: We use a DRM driver to manage the display controller via KMS. The KMSdriver also allocates both scan-out and pixmap/back buffers via theDRM_IOCTL_MODE_CREATE_DUMB ioctl which is internally implemented with GEM. When returning buffers to DRI clients, the x-server uses flink to get aglobal handle to a buffer which it passes back to the DRI client (in ourcase the Mali-T600 X11 EGL winsys). The client then uses the new PRIME ioctls to export the GEM buffer it received from the x-server to a dma_buffdioctls to export the GEM buffer it received from the x-server to a dma_buffd. This fd is then passed into the T6xx kernel driver via our own job dispatch user/kernel API (we're not using DRM for driving the GPU, only thedisplay controller).

Sunday, 20 May 2012

Toshiba hits back with a new 3D notebook, the dynabook Qosmio T852/D8FB. The system sports a 15.6-inch 1920 x 1080 glasses-free 3D display, a 2.30GHz Intel Core i7-3610QM processor, a GeForce GT 640M graphics, an 8GB DDR3 RAM, a 1TB hard drive, a BDXL drive, a CS tuner x 2 degree / BS/110 the ground and runs on Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit (SP1) OS with Office Home and Business 2010. The dynabook Qosmio T852/D8FB will become available from late May for 220,000 Yen (about $2,784).

Saturday, 12 May 2012

Posted by Michael Larabel on May 12, 2012

The DMA-BUF PRIME support in the popular open-source Linux graphics drivers is coming together for the Linux 3.5 kernel to allow for GPU offloaded rendering.

Coming out this week was a new patch for the DMA-BUF/PRIME buffer sharing support so that Intel's DRM driver can offload rendering in one direction and outputs in the other. This patch is based upon David Airlie's work and amounts to just under 200 lines of code in the i915 kernel DRM driver.

Out on the same day from Alex Deucher was a patch entitled "add PRIME support" that effectively does the same as the Intel driver, but instead for the Radeon DRM driver. This too was just about 200 lines of code.

These patches come one week after David Airlie added PRIME sharing support to the TTM memory manager (here) as well as PRIME support for the Nouveau DRM driver (here).

This PRIME support builds upon the DMA-BUF buffer sharing mechanism that was originally merged into Linux 3.3 and the PRIME fundamentals in Linux 3.4. With the Linux 3.5 kernel is where the popular Direct Rendering Manager hardware drivers should support this for sharing buffers between drivers / GPUs. While Intel / Radeon / Nouveau are the most popular drivers, there's also been ongoing DMA-BUF work for the Texas Instruments OMAP, Samsung Exynos, and DisplayLink UDL KMS drivers too.

This technology can ultimately be used for things like NVIDIA Optimus or SLI/CrossFire. DMA-BUF itself largely was born within the Linaro camp for buffer sharing between driver drivers for ARM SoCs. Last November was when PRIME got back under-way for the GPU offloaded rendering.

Friday, 11 May 2012

New high-resolution Zenbooks are on their way, but ASUS has now revealed another addition that's packing its own discrete graphics. Like its recently unveiled siblings, the Zenbook UX32VD still packs a 1920 x 1080 IPS panel and "the latest Intel Core processor" -- likely something from the Ivy Bridge family, although ASUS is keeping schtum on the details for now. Graphical horsepower is delegated to NVIDIA's GT620, while the UX32VD also had a hybrid HDD on show at the event, not the standard SSD -- explaining why this new model is slightly thicker than the UX31A.

HP Pavilion m6-sized for life on the go With a large display packed into a super-slim design, the HP Pavilion m6 is the notebook users will want with them all day. Movies and games come to life on the 15.6-inch diagonal LED backlit high-definition (HD) BrightView display, and rich audio is made possible with Beats Audio, dual speakers and subwoofer.

The brushed-aluminum HP Pavilion m6 can achieve up to eight hours of battery life and features the latest Intel and AMD processors, an optional backlit keyboard and discrete graphics for running the most demanding tasks without pauses or interruptions.

The HP Pavilion m6 is also loaded with HP innovations. HP CoolSense technology automatically adjusts performance and internal fan settings for a noticeably cooler PC, and HP ProtectSmart locks the hard drive to protect photos, music and memories in case the notebook is accidentally dropped. Optional HP SimplePass remembers passwords and provides easy access to online accounts with the swipe of a finger, and the HP TrueVision HD Webcam provides brighter and cleaner HD images.

HP Pavilion dv-series notebook PCs-powerful yet graceful

With a tapered chassis, slim top view and infinity waterfall edge-all inspired by kinetic energy-the new HP Pavilion dv6 and dv7 boast a metal finish, and the HP Pavilion dv4 is available in black licorice, linen white and carmine red.

Coupled with a soft-touch panel at the base of the display cover, the sleek HP Pavilion dv6 and dv7 conform comfortably to the hand, making the notebooks easy to hold. A speaker bar integrated into the display enhances the HP dv-series' Beats Audio experience, projecting audio directly toward the user.

HP's Envy-branded Ultrabooks and "Sleekbooks" will be available in 14- and and 15.6-inch screen sizes in each category, though the Ultrabook configs are naturally Intel-based, while the Sleekbooks will pack Intel or AMD chips. With the Sleekbooks, too, you can also choose optional discrete graphics if there's an Intel processor inside.